Intoxication
by Sullen Kitty
Summary: Oneshot. “If Bobby hadn’t gone undercover after Untethered…” Alex finds Bobby wasted at a bar and takes him home.


Alex Eames sighed and pushed her hair out of her face

Title: Intoxication

Summary: Oneshot. "If Bobby hadn't gone undercover after Untethered…" Alex finds Bobby wasted at a bar and takes him home.

Disclaimer: I don't own Alex or Bobby, though of course I'd love to.

--

Alex Eames sighed and pushed her hair out of her face.

She'd been trying to reach Bobby for the past couple of days, but he hadn't picked up his phone. She knew he was pissed about the suspension, but he'd expected it.

--Though neither of them had suspected it would be this long. Five months, and six just around the corner. What the hell? Still…

She was worried about him. She hated it when he drank, but if he wasn't picking up her phone calls, he was definitely at a bar.

She'd checked all of his usual hangouts and was finally trudging back home when, a few blocks from her apartment, she caught sight of a man that looked suspiciously like her partner though a grimy glass window. She opened the door.

Yeah, that was him, staring blankly at the table, surrounded by several empty bottles of booze.

She pushed past the crowd at the sports bar and made her way over to him. "Bobby?"

He looked up. "Eames," he slurred.

She sighed. "Bobby, what have you been doing?"

He waved his hand in a vague motion, knocking over one of the bottles. Alex caught it and righted it.

"Eames," he said, sounding a little saner, "I may be a bit drunk."

"You _may_ be a _bit_ drunk? Oh, buddy, you passed that point about five bottles ago." She looped his arm around her shoulders and threw some money on the table. "Come on, let's get out of here."

She led him out of the bar and considered her options for a moment. Bring him back to his place, all the way across town, or to her place, two blocks away? Come to think of it, what was he doing so close to her house, anyway?

She looked up at him. "Bobby, why are you so far away from your apartment?"

"I was going to see you, but I got a bit sidetracked." He shrugged. "Oh well."

"Oh well." She groaned and began the trek back to her apartment.

x

When she unlocked the door to her apartment, she guided Bobby into the bedroom. "Come on, you big lug." She helped him off with his coat, and as soon as his head hit the pillow, he conked out, fast asleep.

Alex pulled the swivel chair from her desk over to the side of the bed and sat down. Bobby's alcohol-scented breath blew directly on her face. Her nose wrinkled slightly as she ever so gently touched his unshaven cheek.

"Oh, Bobby," she sighed. "What have you done to yourself?"

x

Alex looked at the little digital clock that stood on the corner of her desk. 5:30. It had been a day of just waiting until she could escape, and by God she was going to, even if it meant leaving work early – something she never, ever did.

Captain Ross stepped out of his office as soon as he saw her gathering her coat. "Detective? Is there a matter that concerns you more than the welfare of the city tonight?" His voice was laced with suspicion.

Alex kept moving, not meeting his eyes. "I'm meeting Goren. I've been worried about him, so…"

She trailed off, looking at the captain and realizing he knew what she was going to say.

He nodded. "Go. Let him know I've been urging the board to let him back on as soon as possible."

She nodded and gave him a fleeting smile. "Thanks."

x

She unlocked the door to her apartment. The door swung open quietly. "Bobby?" she called softly. "If you're awake, I stopped by your place for some clothes for you – oh, Jesus Christ, Bobby."

She'd tactfully removed all of the liquor from the house, so he couldn't drink even if he'd tried. Yet there he was, sprawled out on her couch, reeking of alcohol and sweat, watching reruns of _Friends_.

She threw the clothes over the back of an armchair and took hold of one of his hands. "Bobby, time to get up. You need a shower and some clean clothes."

She helped him up, handed him a pile of clothes, and shut him in the bathroom.

As soon as she heard the shower start, she leaned back against the door, her legs partially giving way beneath her.

Her partner was the farthest from normal she'd ever seen him, besides of course when he'd been in Tate's. What if – and she shuddered to even think for a second about this possibility – what if he never got back to normal? What if, even if he got his badge back, he was so messed up he couldn't even fire a gun without being a danger to himself and others? What if this was the Bobby Goren version of a psychotic break?

What if he was truly going crazy?

She didn't think she could handle it.

x

Alex was idly playing with her phone over a container of fried rice and shrimp when she heard a voice from her bedroom.

"Eames?"

She ran into the bedroom. "Bobby? How d'you feel?"

He groaned. "Like a truck backed up and ran me over… several times." He winced. "I feel like shit."

Alex rolled her eyes. "Wow, really? You were drunk before I found you, and even more recently wasted when I brought you home." She sighed. "Don't get all fucked up because of the suspension – Ross has been trying to get you back, you know. They'll come around sooner or later."

"Later rather than sooner," he grunted. "It's been almost six months. Have they given you a temporary replacement for me?"

Alex shook her head. "Ross keeps offering, but I've kept refusing. It would be - strange, not working with you."

"Get used to it," he muttered into the pillow.

Alex shook her head. "Shut up. I've got Chinese food for dinner – want any?"

He sat up. "Fried rice?"

"And shrimp."

He gave her a look. "You have to ask?"

She grinned and went back into the kitchen. Once there, the grin disappeared from her face and she sat down, giving herself a moment to breathe.

Oh, thank God. He was okay. He hadn't had a psychotic break. He was okay.

She swallowed, a lump rising in her throat. These were just hard times for him. She had to be there for him, had to make sure he came out the other end at least relatively unscathed.

He could battle with his inner demons, but he'd have to leave the rest of the world to her.

Wiping her eyes and forcing a smile, she grabbed the containers and some chopsticks and headed back into her bedroom.

She found Bobby propped up, pillows behind him, flipping through a magazine. He showed her the cover. "I didn't know you subscribed to Home & Garden."

She snorted and dropped into the swivel chair. "I don't. My sister was here last weekend and she left it as a hint. Still hoping I'll get married and go live in the 'burbs with her." She sighed. "She just doesn't get that I won't leave Major Case."

Taking a pair of chopsticks and a container of fried rice from his partner, Bobby wholeheartedly agreed. "You hardly left when you were pregnant, too. What makes her think that you'll go now?"

"She thinks I'm 'out of my prime'," Alex said, putting the little quotation marks with her fingers around the last few words. "I should start thinking about retirement and a pension plan."

She was struggling to open a container of General Tao's chicken when she heard Bobby mutter, "Out of your prime. What does that even mean?"

Alex grinned. "Exactly."

Having finally opened the container of chicken, she reached over and grabbed some of the packets of duck sauce she'd chucked on the corner of the bed. "Don't worry," she said as Bobby began to protest, "I won't use it all." She tossed a couple of packets to him.

"Thank you."

They were silent for a few moments before Bobby said a bit haltingly, "Thank you also for… for taking care of me for the past couple of days, Eames. I know you were worried."

Alex, who had been about to take a bite of chicken, carefully laid the chopsticks on the side of the container so they wouldn't fall in. "I think this is something that we have to talk about, Bobby."

The famous Goren Head Tilt. "I think so too."

She sighed and put the container on her desk. "You got obscenely drunk, Bobby. You got distracted from your destination by a _bar_. If there had been anybody – anybody! – with a grudge against you in the area, they would have found it incredibly easy to kill you." She looked at him and said angrily, "You let your guard down in the most absolutely pathetic way."

He had the decency to look ashamed. "I know, Eames. I _know_. I'm sorry. Thank you for finding me."

"_This time_ I found you." She glared at him, angry tears springing into her eyes. "What about the next time you decide you've had enough of the world and you need to get away? What about the next time you decide you need a vacation from reality? _Who is going to find you then, Robert?"_

He looked at her. "You will," he answered simply.

That was it. The storm had passed. Everything from here on out was sunshine and seagulls.

She slumped limply back in her chair. "You're right, I will. But that leaves you with absolutely no consequences for you actions. What am I supposed to do, not talk to you for a week?" She laughed derisively at her own comment.

Bobby shrugged in response. "It would probably work. I hate it when you don't talk to me."

It was a childish confession, though made more potent by the fact it had been uttered by the large, slightly imposing man she knew so well. She blinked. "Oh. Okay."

She did a sharp about-face towards the desk, picked up her chopsticks, and began eating again.

Bobby was nonplussed. "What are you doing?"

"Ignoring you," she answered promptly, taking another bite of chicken.

"Oh."

"Yeah."

He patted the comforter by his leg. "Want to ignore me where I can share your chicken?"

Silently Alex moved to sit on the bed.

"Thank you." His chopsticks deftly reached in and out of the container, dropping a couple of pieces of chicken into his fried rice before he was content.

They ate in silence for a few moments.

All of a sudden Alex felt Bobby's hand on her face. "What's this?" he asked, his rough thumb tracing a line down her cheek. "A tear line? Eames, were - were you crying?"

"I thought I made it clear I was ignoring you," she said, chewing.

"You were. Why were you crying? What happened?"

She didn't look at him. "I thought you might have had a psychotic break."

His hand paused. "Oh."

"Yes, oh. Bobby, I was so scared. I thought you were going crazy. I didn't want to have to see you up in Carmel Ridge with your mother, taking antidepressants and pumped full of drugs. I didn't want to visit you and be quietly escorted out of the building because you thought I was trying to kill you."

Bobby flinched.

Alex looked up. "I'm sorry," she said quickly. "I didn't mean—"

"Yeah. You meant to hurt me. It's fine."

"I know – well, I know how you are about your mom, so—"

"It's _fine_, Eames," he replied sharply.

This time it was Alex who flinched. "Oh. Okay." She turned back to her dinner.

She heard him suck in a breath. "You were scared. I understand that – believe me, I understand that particular emotion. But don't think I'm going to go crazy every time something bad happens, Eames. I'm fine. I'm not going anywhere."

She looked over at him; there was that head tilt again, as endearing as ever, especially now that she knew he was okay. "I'll worry anyway."

He smiled. "Thank you."

Startlingly, his lips pressed gently to hers. "Bobby?" she asked in disbelief.

"Don't worry," he murmured into her lips, "I'm sober."

She smiled. "I know."

**-Fin-**

A/N: I love Bobby's last line, but I had writers block when I was tying everything up. Sorry if you thought the end bit wasn't up to par. Critique appreciated.

Yeah, I like this one. :) R&R!


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